Happy New Year! I do hope you had a fabulous time bringing in the new year. JT and I enjoyed a four course dinner at La Société with champagne and wine. Don’t worry, we took the subway (Metro) which was free after midnight! We have a busy day on Sunday entertaining our neighbours for cocktails and then heading over to our friends for dinner; Rae and Monica just returned from a Christmas cruise with their three girls so there will be a lot of stories to tell!
I thought this was the last installment of our restaurant reviews this holiday season, but it’s not. The Bowery is in Old Town Toronto on Colborne Street near the St. Lawrence Market and King Edward Hotel. The restaurant is divided into two sections (two buildings were linked for additional space); the first space seems to be more clubby and it’s where the bar is, and the second space is more dining-y where the open kitchen is. The décor is contemporary New York with exposed brick, casual wood tables and cosy booths. The open kitchen is lined with a bar & bar stools along the length for diners to see the chef do his magic. There is a very cool neon light that says You+Me in a pink neon heart on the brick wall! The lighting is great. The cutlery is mismatched antique silver and stainless – it’s very cool.
We made reservations for 7:15 on a Thursday night in the middle of the holidays and we were late but called so they wouldn’t give away our table; we needn’t have worried, it was sadly very empty except for a couple of smallish office parties on the bar side. I liked the décor but there was no vibe, I suspect because it was empty. It was also UNBEARABLY cold inside. We complained and the waitress brought over a heater mentioning that they have also complained to the management. I ate my entire dinner wearing my winter coat, my feet were freezing. You could say that it’s an old building and it’s difficult to heat, but then half that area are restaurants and they don’t have a problem!
We ordered an appetizer to share, the Crostini Platter which was quite lovely with sautéed Mushrooms, Haloumi (Greek brine cured cheese), Pepperonata (caramelized peppers), prosciutto, Pierre Robert (a triple cream cheese) for $14; we had to ask for more crostini but other than that it was quite delicious. I ordered the Grilled Octopus appetizer as my main (in effort to control volume!). It had roasted peppers, nicoise olives, pea sprouts, chickpea panisse (think chick pea polenta) and pickled vegetables for $15, very tasty indeed; other than one tentacle being slightly chewy the rest were grilled to perfection. I could have used a sharper knife. JT had the Waygu and Prime rib burger with shallots, aged cheddar and garlic aioli $15 and the spaetzle with bacon, caramelized onions & sour cream $6, and it was incredibly delicious. We brought some of the spaetzle home it was soooooooo good.
The food totally rocked but I would only go back in warmer weather, unless they fix their heating issues. I can’t even tell you how chilly the bathrooms were!!!
Overall rating (in my opinion): Decor 1/5 (this is where I captured the insufficient heat, otherwise it would have been 3.5), service 3.5/5, food 4/5, Value 4/5, Noise: 5/5 (1 being very noisy, and 5 being very quiet). The restaurant was empty, I would imagine it gets pretty loud at night if it’s busy. We checked Open Table for Friday night and they were fully booked!
Disclaimer: We purchased our meal for full price and my opinions just that, my opinions.
Chef de Cuisine – Jason Maw
Executive Chef – Tawfik Shehata
I don’t think there is anything I dislike more at a restaurant than when it’s cold. I feel too clunky and awkward to leave my coat on, but sometimes on that rare occasion it’s just necessary. In fact it’s why I can’t take my laptop to work at Panera anymore. I just freeze in there. The food sounds like it was fantastic though!
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Is that Panera bread? We had a soup and sandwich on the way to our dear friends in Illinois and it was lovely. I can’t recall if I was cold, though!
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My sister spent New Years Eve at The Bowery & said it was amazing. I think the crowd (the drinks?…heh) always makes a difference. Happy New Year!!!
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We’ll give it another chance when it’s slightly warmer in Toronto Sarah, the food was spot on!
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Good to know that we shouldn’t go there in the winter. The place sounds kind of funky though. I must admit that I’ve never heard of it.
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That’s too bad the place was so cold. I love good food – but if you’re not comfortable – it can’t be fun! Happy New Year!
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Thank you Ann, happy new year to you too!
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Too bad about the temperature – the food sounded very nice. Still, I’d prefer a restaurant being too cold over too hot. Nothing’s worse when you’re slowly sliding off your chair in a puddle of your own sweat (yum yum).
Happy new year Eva 🙂
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I’m with you on that one, Charles, being too hot is never pleasant! We’ve passed on a restaurant in the middle of a heat wave because their air conditioner was not working!
Happy new year to you too!
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Happy New Year Eva! Too bad about the cold at the resto… what a drag! It’s funny, I have very clear memories of freezing my butt off in Toronto (outside that is…). I think it’s because I always expect it to be warmer there than Ottawa so I tend to dress lighter; bad idea! The food sounds amazing at the Bowery though – we’ll be sure to go during the warm weather months! 🙂
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So true, Kelly, TO can be really cold particularly with the wind chill factor but we don’t hold a candle to Ottawa! As I recall, Ottawa is generally a dryer chill, though.
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now that is a great and honest review. Sure wish I could go there
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Thanks Jessica, I’d wait until the summer 😉
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I wonder if they normally keep the heat low because it’s full. You just have to have heat up there! The food sounds good, but eating in a coat is never fun.
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I thought of that, Greg, but doubt it since the waitress said they’ve complained before.
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Happy New Year, Eva! What a shame that the restaurant’s management haven’t figured out that your customers’ comfort is every bit as important as the food. There’s no reason for being cold in a restaurant and his business is undoubtedly suffering because of it.
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It is too bad, hopefully they take it into consideration soon and fix it! Happy new year to you too John!
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